When I was a teenager, I played Dungeons and Dragons. It was a great outlet for my creativity and it forced me to meet people and interact with them — something I was too painfully shy to do on my own. The game also taught me: that my actions have consequences, that evil people may seem fascinating to a teenager but their charisma is just a sham, and that doing the right thing can sometimes be the hardest thing you’ve ever done but to do any less reduces me.
Of course it would be a full decade after that before I could articulate those lessons.
This year, Wizards of the Coast released Dungeons and Dragons 4th ed. This edition streamlines many clunky rules and adds new components to allow for online playing — for when you have friends who physically can’t get together but can meet up on the computer.
Have someone in your life who plays? Let me guide you through the ins and outs of purchasing gaming books for them.
first a glossary of terms:
player — This can refer to everybody in the group since everybody plays but usually it only refers to the members of the group who play characters interacting in the fantasy world the DM has made for them. In this case it doesn’t refer to the DM.
Dungeon Master or DM — this is the person who creates the adventure or uses a pre-made adventure, plays the monsters and the NPCs (non-player characters), makes a lot of dice rolls, manages the rules and makes judgments in applying the rules — like a referee. In most other games they are called the Game Master but in D&D they’re called the Dungeon Master. It requires a lot of extra work, and often more books, to be a DM.
Dice — Every player and the DM need dice. Dice represent the random element in life. The dice help you figure out if you hear that monster that’s been stalking you or if you’re hearing just isn’t what it used to be.
NPC (Non-Player Character) — Every character not played by one of the players is an NPC. NPCs populate the DM’s world and interact with the PCs.
PC (Player Character) — the character that the player creates and takes on adventures created by the DM. The PC gains experience points for successfully concluding an adventure which they use to rise in levels and become better heroes.
Monsters — It just wouldn’t be fantasy without dangerous monsters lurking about to eat the PCs.
And now the books:
Dungeons and Dragons Core Rules
Dungeons & Dragons Player’s Handbook: Roleplaying Game Core Rules, 4th Edition
This is the one book everyone needs. If you play a character or you are the Game Master (called a DM), you need to have a copy of this book on hand during the game. You never know when you need to consult the rules in the middle of the game. (For players and DMs)
Dungeons & Dragons Dungeon Master’s Guide: Roleplaying Game Core Rules, 4th Edition
This is the one book only the Game Master — called a Dungeon Master — can use. Some groups have one player who is always the DM so only she or he gets to have this book. Other groups rotate DM duties so a player may need the book when its her turn. Some people belong to multiple groups — they’re a player in one group and a DM in another — she’ll need the book as well. Unfortunately the only way to know is ask the person — or another member of the group. (For DMs Only)
Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual: Roleplaying Game Core Rules, 4th Edition
This book is also only for the DM. A player can know the rules in the Dungeon Master’s Guide and still have fun but the more a player knows about the monsters they encounter in a game, the less fun it is figuring how how to defeat the creatures. (For DMs Only)
Dungeons & Dragons Premium Dice (D&D Accessory)
These are the dice every player and DM needs to have. The game requires a variety of different shaped dice the generates different kinds of random numbers. This set also includes a dice bag for easy carrying. Most players need one set of dice (although many carry more than that) and a DM usually needs a couple of sets. You can never give too many dice. (For players and DMs)
Dungeons and Dragons Core Rulebook Gift Set, 4th Edition
This is a beautiful gift for the D&D collector or someone who is a DM. It collects The Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide, and Monster Manual together in a slipbound case. (For players and DMs)
Dungeons and Dragons Core Set — Optional Materials
Dungeons & Dragons Dungeon Master’s Screen
This is basically a colorful cardboard screen to allow the DM to roll dice and spread out the games notes without the players being able to see. These DM Screens also have the most often rules and tables on it for quick reference. (For DMs Only)
Dungeons & Dragons Character Record Sheets: Roleplaying Game Character Sheets, 4th Edition
These character record sheets are ideal and inexpensive gifts for both players and DM alike. Players can use them to record their character or characters (because sometimes characters die in these adventures) and the DM can use them to make lots of important characters to populate the game world. (For players and DMs)
Halls of the Giant Kings: DU1 – Dungeon Tiles (D&D Accessory)
These tiles add a new dimension to D&D games and gives Dungeon Masters an easy and inexpensive way to include great-looking terrain for their games. This set provides ready-to-use, configurable tiles with which to build exciting dungeons and strongholds designed for use with Large and Huge D&D miniatures. This accessory for the Dungeons & Dragons Roleplaying Game contains six double-sided sheets of illustrated, die-cut terrain tiles printed on heavy cardstock. (For players or DMs)
Streets of Shadow: DU2 – Dungeon Tiles (D&D Accessory)
This product gives Dungeon Masters an easy and inexpensive way to include great-looking terrain for their games. This set provides ready-to-use, configurable tiles with which to build exciting city-based encounter scenes. This accessory contains six double-sided sheets of illustrated, die-cut terrain tiles printed on heavy cardstock. (For players or DMs)
Dungeons and Dragons Rules Supplements 4th ed
Adventurer’s Vault: A 4th Edition D&D Supplement
This supplement for the Dungeons and Dragons game presents hundreds of magic items, weapons, tools, and other useful items for your D&D character. Whether you’re a player looking for a new piece of equipment or a Dungeon Master stocking a dragon’s hoard, this book has exactly what you need. (For Players and the DM)
Martial Power: A 4th Edition D&D Supplement
This tome focuses on the martial heroes: characters who rely on their combat talents and keen wits for survival. It provides new archetypal builds for the fighter, ranger, rogue, and warlord classes, including new character powers, feats, paragon paths, and epic destinies. (For DMs and players who have a fighter, ranger, rogue, or warlord character)
Manual of the Planes: A 4th Edition D&D Supplement
The planes have always been a place of great mystery and danger in the Dungeons & Dragons Roleplaying Game, and the new array of planes debuting in 4th Edition continue that grand tradition. These strange dimensions offer unlimited adventure opportunities for Dungeon Masters and their players. (DMs only)
Draconomicon: Chromatic Dragons (D&D Rules Expansion)
This book describes several varieties of dragons, including red, blue, green, black, and white dragons, as well as three completely new chromatic dragons. These are the evil dragons of the D&D game. (For DMs only)
Dungeons and Dragons Adventures 4th ed
Keep on the Shadowfell (Dungeons & Dragons, Adventure H1)
The town of Winterhaven stands watch over a ruined keep that was once a bastion of good in the realm. This keep overlooks the Shadow Rift, a dark scar in the world that was once a gateway to the Shadowfell but has been dormant for many years. Now, an evil cleric of Orcus, Demon Lord of the Undead, seeks to re-open the gate, and the only thing standing in his way is a small yet determined band of heroes from Winterhaven. A adventure for characters of levels 1-3. (DMs only)
Thunderspire Labyrinth (Dungeons & Dragons, Adventure H2)
Beneath Thunderspire Mountain lies a sprawling network of mazes, tombs, and caverns collectively known as the Labyrinth of Lost Souls. In recent years, this vast labyrinth has become a living dungeon where trade between the surface and subterranean worlds is possible. However, beyond the well-lit halls where prospectors, merchants, and traders convene lies a darker world where adventurers battle monsters and fiendish beings perform secret rituals for their dark masters. . . An adventure for characters of levels 4-6. (DMs only)
Pyramid of Shadows (Dungeons & Dragons, Adventure H3)
The ancient trees of the Shadowsong Forest have borne witness to the passing of epochs, and hidden beneath their dark canopy are the remains of empires long departed. Few souls brave enough to explore the primeval forest ever return, for countless horrors haunt the crumbled ruins. When a band of evil criminals seeks refuge within the darkest reaches of the forest, brave adventurers are needed to root them out. The trail leads to the heart of the woods, wherein looms the greatest secret of all — The Pyramid of Shadows. An adventure for characters of levels 7-10. (DMs only)
King of the Trollhaunt Warrens (Dungeons & Dragons, Adventure P1)
Designed to take characters from 11th to 14th level, this adventure pits the heroes against a variety of horrible monsters and fiendish foes as they seek to thwart the evil machinations of the denizens of the Trollhaunt Warrens. An adventure for characters of levels 11-14. (DMs only)
Demon Queen’s Enclave (Dungeons & Dragons, Adventure P2)
In this adventure, the heroes must unravel the plots of the vile minions of Lolth, the infamous Demon Queen of Spiders. Along the way, they’ll face off against drow, demons, and worse! An adventure for characters of levels 15-1-14. (DMs only)
Dungeons and Dragons The Forgotten Realms 4th ed
Dungeons and Dragons is the granddaddy of all role-playing games but The Forgotten Realms, born from the fevered brow of Canadian library clerk Ed Greenwood, is probably the most popular of campaign settings.
Since the 1970s, Forgotten Realms has grown-up and developed along side the Dungeons and Dragons game. The core rules offer the game engine to run the game but campaign material like the Forgotten Realms books offer “flavoring” — a world with all the hard work done. The DM comes in, takes what she needs and modifies what she wants to make her stories work.
Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide, 4th Edition Forgotten Realms Player’s Guide (Forgotten Realms Supplement) Forgotten Realms Adventure 4th ed Scepter Tower of Spellgard: (Forgotten Realms Adventure FR1) Supplementary Help Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition For Dummies Popularity: 39% [?]
Welcome to Faerun, a land of amazing magic, terrifying monsters, ancient ruins, and hidden wonders. This book includes everything a Dungeon Master needs to run a Dungeons and Dragons campaign in the Forgotten Realms setting, as well as elements that DMs can incorporate into their own Dungeons and Dragons campaigns. 
The Forgotten Realms Player’s Guide presents this world from the point of view of the adventurers exploring it. This product includes everything a player needs to create his character for a Dungeons and Dragons campaign in the Forgotten Realms setting. (For players and DMs)
Scepter Tower of Spellgard is the first full-length Forgotten Realms adventure published for 4th Edition Dungeons and Dragons. When paired with the adventure that appears in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide, this adventure provides the Dungeon Master with all he needs to get his campaign started. A Forgotten Realms adventure for 2nd-level characters. (DMs only)
Explore the fantasy world of D&D and delve into dungeons, slay monsters, and gain treasure! If you’ve been thinking of playing D&D or you’ve played before and you want to get up to speed on the all-new 4th Edition, this is the book for you.
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